MUSKEGON, MI – A 59-year-old Muskegon man was arrested Thursday after allegedly driving intoxicated with a handgun in his possession.

Police said the man had an explanation for carrying the gun, however, claiming he had been robbed in the 1100 block of Williams Street Thursday prior to his arrest. The suspect allegedly told police he managed to take the gun
away from the alleged robber, which was how it got into his vehicle.

Police were still investigating the robbery allegation on Friday.

Authorities say the incident, reported around 9:10 p.m. Thursday, began with a call of shots fired in the area of Wood Street and Apple Avenue.

Officers were dispatched to that area, where they observed a black pickup truck driving along Williams Street. The vehicle abruptly stopped and then accelerated at a high rate of speed, police said.

Authorities pulled the vehicle over and the driver, later identified as a 59-year-old Muskegon man, exited the vehicle with an object in his hand.

Police ordered the man back in the vehicle, at which point the man dropped the object, which police discovered was a handgun.

Authorities secured the weapon and then questioned the man. Officers allegedly detected an odor of alcohol coming from the vehicle.

The driver had a blood-alcohol level of 0.14 percent in his system at the time, well over the legal limit of 0.08 percent to drive a vehicle, police said.

The suspect is currently lodged in the Muskegon County Jail for operating a vehicle under the influence of alcohol.

Anyone with information about the incident is asked to contact the Muskegon Police Department at (231) 724-6750.